AU spring concert features three choirs

Published: March 21, 2012 4:02AM

Ashland University Department of Music presents a spring choral concert featuring the Ashland University choir, chamber singers and women's chorus 4 p.m. Sunday, March 25 at Jack and Deb Miller Chapel. The performance is free and open to the public.

Directed by Stephanie Sikora with Holly Allan accompanying on piano, the women's chorus will begin the concert with Thomas Morley's "Fire, fire, my heart" followed by Eric Rahoon's "She Weeps Over Rahoon" with Margaret Rickard assisting on English horn. Continuing with a French Canadian lilting piece, "Reel a Bouche," solos will be performed by Courtney Patton, Courtney McCreary, Elizabeth Papantonio, Danielle Rhonemus, Jennifer Holderman, Kelsey Myers, Susanna Strobel and Laura Huntington. The chorus concludes its program with Joseph Martin's "The Awakening."

Under the direction of Rowland Blackley, the choir will begin its program accompanied by bells and Timothy Guenther on organ for Charles Ives' "Psalm 90." Pieces also include Heinrich Schütz's "Also hat Gott die Welt geliebt" (For God so loved the world), Charles Villiers Stanford's "Beati quorum via" (Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord), the Scottish folk song "Loch Lomond" arranged by Jonathan Quick and John Rutter's arrangement of the English folk song "Dashing Away with the Smoothing Iron."

The final portion of the program will feature the chamber singers directed by Blackley. They will begin with romantic part songs by Stanford, MacFarran and Sir Arthur Sullivan; continue with two madrigals by 20th-century composer George Mabry and conclude with Mozart's "Eine kleine Nachtmusik."

For more information about the spring choral concert, visit www.ashland.edu/music or contact Tricia Applegate, coordinator of performing arts publicity and events, at 419-289-5950 or tapplega@ashland.edu.